


On The Edge Of Something

by asimaiyat



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Biphobia, Bisexual Character, Bittersweet, Coming Out, Family Issues, Ficlet, Homophobia, Hopeful Ending, M/M, Mild Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-26
Updated: 2016-08-26
Packaged: 2018-08-11 02:03:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7871356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asimaiyat/pseuds/asimaiyat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After telling your brother you're a metahuman, telling him you're bi should be no big deal, right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	On The Edge Of Something

They’d been coming here since they were kids. The park itself wasn’t too memorable, but the food truck that parked there on Saturday afternoons had been serving the best arepas in Southeast Central since before the city’s white hipsters learned what, well, any of those words meant. Cisco and Dante had started grabbing lunch here after music lessons, Bible study and SAT prep sometime in their early teens, and as of about a month ago, they’d made a conscious effort to pick the habit back up.

Dante got a pork arepa and a bottle of water, Cisco got one with black beans and plantains and an orange Fanta, and they claimed an unoccupied bench to watch kids messing around on the monkey bars and people with dogs trying to meet cute. They made small talk for a few minutes, family gossip, work stories, complaining about the heat. Then Cisco drained the rest of his soda, rolled his shoulders and turned to look Dante in the eye.

“Hey, bro. I’m really glad we’ve been hanging out more, it means a lot to me, you know?” He braced himself, raised his chin slightly, and plunged forward. “And I think I’m ready to tell you something, uh, kind of big.”

Dante looked confused. “You already told me about you being a muta—a metahuman.”

“Yeah, I know,” said Cisco impatiently. “It’s not about that.”

“Oh.” Dante smiled, teasing. “So this is about you being gay?”

Cisco felt something clench in his chest, but it wasn’t like he’d expected this to go smoothly. He bit down on his lower lip, let out a long breath through his nose, and tried not to glare too much. “Bi, actually. But sure, close enough.”

Dante got a look on his face like his lunch wasn’t agreeing with him. “Cisco… it was a joke.”

“Yeah, I know it was.” Cisco sighed and looked down, playing with the hem of his t-shirt. “Only thing is, it’s not. I like women, and I also like, uh, not women.”

“Right.” Dante looked… more bored than anything, now. “Are you going to do the whole coming-out thing now? Telling everyone? Jesus, Mom’s going to be so upset…”

“I’m not _telling_ Mom yet!” He didn’t mean to raise his voice, but this was… this was frustrating. “I’m not telling you not to tell her, or anyone else. I don’t want to make you lie for me. I’ll tell the rest of the family eventually, but I’m not trying to have a relationship with them right now. I’m just—I’m just telling you.”

Dante swallowed and took a deep breath, like maybe he was realizing he sounded like an ass.

“You’re telling me because you trust me,” he said slowly. “Or because you want to.”

“Yeah, that’s the idea. And because I’m seeing this guy and it’s actually going really well, for once.” He smiled in spite of himself for a second, before getting serious again. “And if we’re going to do this, trying to be friends, then I need to be able to talk about him with you just like you can talk to me about the girls you date. The same way I could talk about it if Barry were Betty or something. You feel me?”

For a few minutes Dante sipped his water in silence and Cisco tried not to spin out worst-case scenarios. Sometimes it felt like he was seeing the end of the world even when his powers weren’t involved. Finally his brother spoke. “So… Barry, huh?”

Cisco nodded, looking at him expectantly.

“Is he a nerd, too?” Dante cracked a smile.

“Dude, like you would not believe,” Cisco replied, returning his smile and only rolling his eyes a little bit. “I want you to meet him. But you have to be cool, okay? Because I’m going to want to introduce him to the rest of the family one day, and I’m kind of hoping I’ll have someone on my side because you _know_ telling Abuela Beatriz isn’t gonna be easy.”

“Yeah. Sure, of course.” Dante was sitting up straighter, almost like he was proud. “Listen, I know I’ve given you a lot of shit over the years, but—”

Cisco raised a hand at chest level. “Do _not_ try to apologize, fam. You’re just gonna make it worse. Just… just be cool about this, please?”

Dante opened his mouth, and Cisco’s hand went up again at almost Barry-speed. Dante looked mildly offended but nodded silently.

“Good,” said Cisco with a serene smile. “You’re coming bowling with me and Barry Friday night. Bring a date.”

Still regarding him a little skeptically, Dante pulled out his phone to type the date into his calendar. “Friday the 17th… bowling with nerds. Got it.”

“I’m gonna warn Barry about your sense of humor,” said Cisco, but he could feel a smile spreading across his face. He reached out to clap a hand against Dante’s shoulder, and his brother leaned against it amicably, and neither of them said anything.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading! All feedback is loved and welcome. Follow [my tumblr](tumblr.com/reversetrash) for more flashvibe and Cisco love (as well as love for basically all the characters)


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